Adolescents as energy conservation stewards

This study explored the potential of adolescent to promote energy conservation within their households through environmental education. We piloted a small randomized controlled trial called the Dial Down Challenge, a six-week online program on energy-saving practices involving 15 adolescents from an elementary and a high school in Los Angeles and 58 parents. The program included practical knowledge and in-home activities, such as adjusting refrigerator and thermostat settings, to assess how well the adolescents could influence their parents’ attitudes and behaviors toward energy conservation. The results demonstrated some enhancement in knowledge, awareness, and motivation regarding energy conservation among the adolescents and parents involved in the study. A noteworthy finding was the effectiveness of modifying refrigerator default settings, which proved to be a one-time adjustment yielding substantial energy savings without disrupting daily household routines. While parents recognized their children as credible sources of energy conservation information, they also highlighted the difficulty of maintaining long-term engagement with conservation practices. This study illuminates both the opportunities and challenges inherent in environmental education programs aimed at improving household energy conservation by implementing changes to appliances’ default settings.